The Emperor's Songbird
by mellow-panda7
Summary: When emperor Axel meets a beautiful bird and befriends it, love and song brighten up the lonely ruler's world, but with the findings of love a price must be paid, and a decision must be made. Will Axel make the right choice and save his love? AkuRoku.
1. Chapter 1

This story is AKUROKU, I promise.

Story warnings: Blood, and yaoi (boyxboy)

DISCLIAMER: I OWN NOTHING BUT MY BRAIN!

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><p>It was early in the afternoon as the emperor of the Aztec empire strolled through the grounds near his large and grand palace. His long, spiked red hair flowed behind his head powerfully and with grace, his thin body, which was covered in expensive jewelry, moved fluidly yet with power and purpose, like a jaguar's. His eyes, the most brilliant of greens, were that of a cat's, hiding what he knew and beautiful, but with a promise of ferocity when provoked, and were lined with paints to draw more attention to the radiating orbs. Strange tattoo's laid beneath each eye, dark purple, upside-down tear drops, a tribute to his father's memory.<p>

The trees he passed marked the end of the city and the beginning of the luscious and beautiful jungle that always looked oddly more welcoming in the bath of golden rays gifted from the sun. The emperor couldn't help but let a small smile grace his lips as he looked out at the greenery. Such beauty that hid the dangers lurking behind the trees, waiting to pounce you when you least expected. The tall red-haired man let out a chuckle, despite himself, as he sat down on a stone bench and basked in the sun, needing the moment to himself.

The palace the emperor was sitting near was made of rough orange- brown handmade bricks, and was a tall, multilayer temple looking thing with an eternity of stairs leading up to the very top, and almost glowed in the sunlight. Of course, his palace was nowhere near as tall as the actual temple, which made sense. The gods deserved a better place to dwell then he, a mere mortal emperor, deserved. The wind blew past the young man in a cool caressing way, taking away some of the sun's heat for just a moment. Axel sighed, welcoming the comfort as his feathered headdress, which he carried in his arms because it had been itching his head, blew with the wind, the gold, green, and blue feathers flowed beautifully together, a sign of his status as royalty.

He set the head dress down on the bench next to him, careful of the feathers that had been painstakingly sown together by hand by the empire's best headdress maker, and adjusted the long rainbow cloth that covered everything below his waist. The cloth was made from cotton, another sign of his wealth and status, and had beautiful and intricate patterns sewn into the cloth. He sighed and just relaxed, deciding not to even bother messing with the cape tied over one of his shoulder, that hung over the right side of his body.

Axel was young for an emperor, only twenty-two, but after his father's sudden passing with a strange illness he was the only heir, thus began his reign. He had been ruling for two years, and, as far as he could perceive, was doing well. He had conquered new territory and they had been giving the empire the tribute the empire demanded on time, and as long as they kept being on time, he saw no need to interfere with their internal affairs. Still, with dealing with his court, keeping his people in line and all the sacrifices that were going to the gods, the man was stressed and used his short moments of free time to get away from it all and to unwind.

A soft tweet sounded above the tired man, and he opened his eyes to locate the maker of the beautiful little noise. A small, but beautifully colored, yellow bird was sitting in tree nearby, staring at Axel. The red-head smiled softly.

"Hello there, are you resting as well?"

The bird tilted its head as if in response.

'I don't think I've ever seen such beautiful blue eyes on a bird before…' the emperor noted. In fact, the golden feathered bird had the deepest navy blue eyes. He had only seen gems that blue… He smiled more at the beautiful bird. "Are you traveling, perhaps? It isn't every day I see a bird as lovely as you."

The bird sang softly at him, making the man laugh. "Are you a songbird? You have a nice voice. Better than the court singer's, but, shhh, that's supposed to be a secret." The man lifted a finger to his lips, and winked at the little bird, who chirped in response.

Axel smiled as a voice yelled for him. The man pulled a slight face and rose to his feet as the high priest, Xemnas, walked calmly towards him, the cloth tied around the man's hips swayed as he walked, the colors and patterns not as intricate as the emperor's own. The man's oddly styled grey hair clashed harshly with his dark tan skin and eyes, as golden as a snake's, yet, no matter how much the colors should have looked horrible together, the high priest pulled them off beautifully, if not a little too well.

"My lord, you should stop lollygagging and get started on the preparations for the sacrifice." The man's deep calmed voice directed. Only Xemnas had the right to talk to him like that, as if he had a slight command over him. If anything, it was better not to anger the man who could call the gods to curse you.

Axel chuckled, "Of course, Xemnas, I was just taking a short break." The emperor turned his head back to the little bird, who seemed to be watching with an almost human like curiosity. "Farewell, little bird, keep safe." He smiled before picking up his headdress, turning, and walking towards the palace, Xemnas falling into step with him.

"Speaking to the wildlife, my lord?" The priest asked, raising an eyebrow. The red-head chuckled, "Who knows Xemnas, maybe that bird was a messenger of a god?" The silverette hummed in turn.

"Perhaps, sire, perhaps."

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><p>'What a strange human…' The golden bird mused to himself, 'It isn't every day someone decides to talk to me… At least he was nice, he even said good bye to me...'<p>

Sora, the small bird, flapped his wings happily before hopping out of the tree and taking flight. He flew till he was far from the human city, and deep in the forest, flying above the trees to keep out of reach of any snakes hiding in the branches.

The golden bird flew till he came to the tree he liked best; high above the forest floor, and with strong branches that reached far from the tree, so snakes or other such dangerous creatures couldn't pray on the many species of smaller creatures that called the tree their home.

Sora landed on one such branch, and immediately went on a search for his best friend Riku, wanting to share his interesting experience with the fruit bat. He hopped down and swooped down, calling, "_Riku! Riku, where are you?_" in his song filled way.

He landed on a branch at the very top of a tree, and heard a soft squeaking noise, with which he recognized as a bat's equivalent to a yawn, "_Sora, what the hell? The sun hasn't even set…_" Riku grumbled underneath the bird, hanging upside down on the branch and wrapped up snuggly in his wings. Said bird looked over the edge at his friend happily. "_Riku, guess what! I talked to a human today!_" He heard soft grumblings from the bat.

"_Are you saying those idiots finally understand what we're saying?_"

Sora paused and flapped his wings thoughtfully. "_Well… No…_" the bird quickly perked back up, "_But he said I had a pretty voice! He said I sounded better than 'court singer'! What do you think he meant?_"

"_Pretty sure he just means you sound better than a human,_" Riku grumbled, wishing he could go back asleep, but knowing the little tweeting bird wouldn't leave him alone till he was done talking. "_Which you probably do, considering how awful they sound when they talk._"

The gold feathered bird cheeped happily. "_Still, he was nice! And he didn't sound awful when he spoke, Riku. He even said goodbye to me when he got up._"

"_Congratulations. Can I go back to sleep now?_"

The gem eyed bird made a squawk noise, his own way of scoffing, and hopped off the branch. "_Fine. Lazy bones..._" were his last words to the bat before flying off.

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><p>Somewhere close by, yet so far away, a man was plotting and wanting.<p>

"He will be mine….MINE…. Axel, you'll be mine…"

He continued to pace as snorts of deranged laughter bubbled from his chest, his hands going up to run his fingers through his hair.

"I deserve him, I've been there… Always, always been there… Axel, why don't you see me?" He wailed to no one but the air, roughly pulling his hair. Similar shouts and moans filled the rest of the night as the man paced, again and again, back and forth, wailing for something that belonged to him.

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><p>AN: Well, howdy :D This is my first fic. Go me! I just finally got around to writing my stories down, and I decided to post this one, so tell me what you think! Did you hate it? Would you marry it? Was it so-so? I hope ya'll liked it. :) I'd like to give a shout out to my friends who I already know are going to nag me about this story, so; HI FRIENDS! *Waves like an idiot to the air* ...Okay, I'm done :).


	2. Chapter 2

**Warnings**: Self mutilation ( nothing to bad ), Axel being a weirdo

_**I STILL OWN NOTHING.**_

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><p>The morning after Axel's encounter with the small bird was like any other; everyone was up and busy, scurrying around in an orderly fashion about the palace, cleaning what needed to be cleaned and other important tasks. The merchants of the beloved city of Tenochtitlan had already opened their stands for a day of selling, and the citizens were all going about their business. Axel, wearing his accursedly itchy feathered headdress, was sitting in the main part of the palace on an ornate cushion, people being careful not to step on him, or get in his way while he worked.<p>

The most recently conquered village had sent in their tribute as ordered; an assortment of fine feathers, jade, turquoise, dyes, animals to be butchered and eaten, and many fine cloths. Axel had to personally go through it to make sure they hadn't left anything out. They hadn't, and the emperor was pleased. After seeing to that, the redhead had to do one of his most disliked tasks of all – seeing the palace gardener. He had been stalling all morning, hoping to put the meeting off as long as possible. He sighed as he forced himself to stand and walk away as servants ran to put all the tribute in its proper place.

Marluxia was an odd man, and isn't want that Axel hated him, that would be child-like and would result in some killing, no, something about the flowery man just rubbed him the wrong way, what with his absurd hair- pink of all colors- and smug attitude. The emperor, and most of the staff in the palace, greatly suspected that the man had taken clothing dye to his hair as the color pink could not be natural.

Axel found the tall skinny man outside, seeing to the planting of many beautiful and tropical flowers, their colors bright and lovely. He was dressed in a cloth wrapped around his waist that was full of bright colors and patterns and ended just below his knees, expensive jewelry was adorned all over his body, from his ankles to his ears. Despite the man's strangeness, he truly did know what he was doing. A large slab of stone was resting on the ground, covered in all sorts of plants, some looking like small saplings, others large and fully grown looking. The redhead stopped nearby to watch the flowery man supervise slaves planting the large plants in a specific order.

"No you fool." The pink haired man growled calmly to a slave on his knees in the soil, "The black tiger plumeria should go there, not the danai delight."

The slave looked up at the man in utter confusion, making Marluxia groan in distaste. "Put the large purple flower there, not the white and pink." Apparently, this type of miscommunication happened often, as the usually sarcastic man didn't even waste his breath speaking insultingly slow to the slave, who nodded and picked the plant up from the hole in the dark soil and carried it back to the large slab, placing it down before picking up a large purple flower as ordered.

In all honesty, Axel didn't see what the big deal was; the white and pink plant looked just fine where it had been, and he frowned a little as the slave took the purple plant back to its place in the ground, and slid it into the hole before covering the hole up with dirt. The tan man then stood and moved out of the way.

The emperor blinked in surprise, as Marluxia nodded. The arrangement actually _did_ look better with the purple flower…

"Can I help you, my lord?" Marluxia purred over his shoulder, as if he'd known the redhead had been standing there the whole time.

Axel rolled his eyes and walked to stand by the man's side and surveyed the grounds from the new point of view. "I was simply curious about the progress you've been making, considering how much of our resources you used to gather all these plants." The emperor couldn't help a small smirk as the pink haired man crossed his arms.

"Do forgive me my lord," He spoke smoothly, a light in his eyes as he glanced at the other man, "but one cannot place a price on beauty. Even if some slaves have been lost in the jungle looking for these beautiful little creatures," Axel didn't miss the warm smile the strange man threw at the plants, almost like he was speaking of his dear children, "I say it's worth it. There will always be those who commit crimes and those who are poor enough to sell themselves into slavery to replace the ones we lose." He waved his hand casually, causing Axel to roll his eyes.

"Though that may be true, do not needlessly kill our workers." The redhead resisted the urge to sigh.

"Yes my lord." Marluxia bowed to him, "Is that all? I am almost done with this part of the grounds, and then we will move our party," the man pointed at the slab holding the plants, "and we will start on the back." He rested his hands on his hips and glared at a slave who had sat down.

Axel nodded, "Very good, I will let you continue your work." Marluxia bowed in farewell, before snapping at the slaves working for him.

The emperor walked away, sandaled feet gliding over the stone pathway. At least that was done now and he wouldn't have to see the man again for some time. 'I suppose next I should check in with Xemnas to make sure things are going well with the preparations.' He thought to himself as he headed to the road leading to the largest and most decorated building in the city.

The walk up the stone steps was familiarly long, but he made it to the top and walked into the temple, a large stone statue of Huitzilopochtli, the patron god of the city, welcoming him. Axel immediately went to the statue and bowed his head and sent a prayer of thanks to the god before kneeling to the ground and picking up a small thorn from a bowl in front of the god's statue. He stuck his tongue out, and drove it through before laying the blood covered thorn in front of the god, and whispering a prayer over his offering, some blood dripping from his mouth.

"My lord? Ah, it is you. Your unusual hair color was a giveaway." Xemnas had walked out from another room, a large book in his hands, to find the emperor praying. Axel finished and rose to his feet before smiling at the man and wiping blood from his mouth.

"Xemnas, how goes the preparations?" The older man sighed and walked over to his emperor, closing the book in his hands.

"Well, the prisoners are being as difficult as always. Most of them fight back, or give insults. One managed to break free and attacked my apprentice." The sliver haired man looked annoyed, while Axel frowned slightly in concern.

"Is Saïx all right?" The question caused Xemnas to scoff, "Wrong question. You should ask about the health of the prisoner who jumped him." There was an undeniable note of pride in the high priest's voice causing the emperor to laugh, a bit of blood dripping from his lips.

"Fair enough. But other than that, all is well?" He spoke as he wiped the red liquid away.

Xemnas nodded, "Rest assured, my lord, the sacrifice will be going on as planned. We have more than enough prisoners to keep the sun and its warrior strong." The high priest seemed sure of this fact, and even offered a slight smile. "I am sure the gods will be very happy with the offering."

"I can only hope they will be." The redhead smiled at the man and bowed to him, "I will leave you to your business, high priest."

Xemnas returned the bow, "Thank you, my lord. Do have a good day."

Axel smiled, "Same to you." And with that, the emperor walked out of the temple, and down the long flight of stairs, heading back to his palace and the orderly chaos that was more than likely waiting for him.

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><p>After a morning of finding food; nuts, berries, fruits and the like, Sora stopped at a large, cup shaped leaf to drink rain water that had collected there.<p>

The sun was high in the sky, and some fluffy white clouds floated past. The golden bird hopped away from the leaf and glided up into the sky. 'I'm so bored…' Sora tweeted sadly as he flapped his wings.

He had gone to Riku again and talked to him until the bat had hissed at him to let him sleep. The small bird was beginning to question his choice in picking a nocturnal creature to be his best friend. They never had time to hang out, and Riku was always annoyed when he was woken up before the sun set.

'Maybe that human is in the same place…' This thought brought hope to the little bird, and he began heading towards the red furred human's home, hoping as much as he could that the strange, tall man would be able to entertain him and make this accursed boredom go away.

It took a little while for him to make it to the large palace, but when he did, Sora landed on the branch he had yesterday and looked for the human. He wasn't sitting on the weird stone block like he had been.

Sora's wings and head drooped. There went his last chance of ridding his boredom…

"Little bird?" A warm, smooth voice called, and Sora's head snapped up in surprise. The human had come after all! The man had just walked around the corner and started smiling when he saw the little bird up in the trees.

"I had hoped to run into you today. Are you hungry?" The man lifted his arm up to reveal a half loaf of bread that was in his hand. "We can share. I swiped this from kitchen."

The human walked to his usual place on the bench and tore his bread before throwing it onto the ground for the bird, smiling. The bird perked up and flew to the man's feet and began eating the food given to him, chirping happily in thanks. The emperor laughed softly.

"Still with that pretty little voice of yours," he threw more bread to the bird before tearing a piece off for him to eat.

After a few moments of comfortable silence, the human spoke to him again, and Sora looked up at him as his rich smooth voice filled the space.

"Hmm… I think you need a name." The human had a wide and mischievous smile on his lips. Sora cocked his head and twitted softly in question. He already had a name…

Never the less, the human continued to speak, "It would have to be something that matches your feathers and eyes…" The man fell into silence as he thought.

"_But my name is Sora!_" The bird flapped his wings as he tried to explain, though it seemed the human thought he was dancing or something, and only smiled more at him.

Suddenly, the man's eyes lit up, and he smacked his hand into his fist, "I got it!" The red-furred man bent over to grin at him, "Roxas. Your name is Roxas."

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><p>CHAPTER TWO IS UP :D Moe'suckras! Lol, I plan on updating every sunday as long as i can, just letting you know. :)<p>

Review responses:

**randomscreamfes**:

:P I will when I get to it, freaking munchken.

**P5hng-Me-A'Wy**:

*Spazz dance* I can't believe you reviewed my story! I love your stories! :D You wouldn't believe how happy I was when I saw you had reviewed! Thank you so much! And, yeah, my grammar and spelling are weird and I have a funny way of explaining things, but I hope you'll continue to enjoy this story :)

**Dolly-D-Mushroom**:

Thank you for reviewing! :D I'm so happy you liked it :) and, as for marrige, I'm sure I can bribe Mansex to be the priest. I just have to sell him my heart... I wonder if that's like selling your soul to the devil... Hmm... Eh, It would be worth it to see someone marry my story :D

**Russiada**:

LOOK! AN UPDATE! MARRY IT! MARRY IT! XD lol, Thank you for reviewing! :)

One last thank you to everyone who alerted and favorited, y'all are cool, but those who review are made of pure, 100% awesome sauce :D

Don't you wanna be made of awesome sauce? Review. Till next time people! :D


	3. Chapter 3

**STILL**_** DON'T OWN ANTHING**_

_**Warnings:**_Um... I think it's all safe...

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><p>'Roxas? What?' The little bird made a small noise, questioning the man's sanity, while said man just grinned down at him, looking as if he was very proud of himself.<p>

"That's right; you'll be my little Roxas bird." Axel nodded his head as if the matter was completely decided.

Sora stared up at him, at the man who was possibly the weirdest human in the entire empire. The tall red head only grinned back in response.

"The name's Axel, by the way. A-X-E-L. Commit it to memory, Roxas." He grinned deviously at the bird, who tweeted softly.

'I guess it could be worse… At least he's not trying to eat me, or something.' Sora perked up and decided to get over the new name and to just be happy to have made a new friend. To show the man his improved mood, he began chirping happily from the ground, causing Axel to laugh and toss him more bread.

"Hello to you too, Roxas."

"My lord, are you shirking your responsibilities _again_?" An annoyed, deep voice called over, and Axel looked towards the person while the little bird, caught off guard, squawked and flew away into the trees.

The emperor watched the bird fly away before turning his head back to the new-comer, frowning. "Jeez, Xemnas, you scared him away."

Sora eyed the man, who he remembered from yesterday, when he was safely in a tree. He didn't really like this man, something about him told of hidden power, just beneath the surface. His bizarre coloring didn't help the feeling of unease.

The tall, sliver haired man stared up at the sky and appeared to be asking the gods for patience. Finally, the high priest brought a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"Forgive me, my lord." He spoke slowly, fighting irritation, "but, instead of playing with the bird, why do you not tend to other, more important matters? Like checking in with the instrument maker? The dancer's need music to dance to, and we both know that the best instrument maker in the empire is also the best slacker. Well, almost the best." The man raised an eyebrow at Axel, who rolled his eyes and stood up.

"I get it." He turned his head and smiled at the bird who watched them almost wearily. "I guess I'll have to see you tomorrow, Roxas. Till then," he smiled and waved, before heading back inside the palace with Xemnas, who rolled his eyes, and shook his head disapprovingly.

Sora stayed in the trees and watched as the two strange humans walk away, before taking off and flying into the forest.

"Calm down, Xemnas, I deserve a break during the day. What's wrong with that?" Axel raised an eyebrow at the man.

"After this ritual is complete, and the planets and stars have moved from their perfect alignment, and another portion of our debt has been paid to the gods, _then _thatis the time you may relax and take your _breaks_." The older man all but spat.

Axel lifted his hands in surrender, "Alright, I understand. You're right. The ritual does deserve my full, undivided attention. I will go speak to Demyx immediately."

Xemnas nodded his head once, and Axel turned around and began heading into the city for the second time that day.

Unlike most merchants and craftsmen, Demyx had set up his shop away from the large hustle and bustle of the city's shopping district, and had, instead, located himself in a quieter part of the city, in an upper-class neighborhood. This was unusual, to say the least, and most would have thought it would be business suicide, as one bad review from a customer and his business would have plummeted and he would have been on the streets, or would have sold himself into slavery to keep debt off his shoulders.

Lucky for Demyx, he was amazing at what he did, and his instruments were of the highest quality. The hyper, and sometime lazy, man was also a friend of Axel's.

After quite some walking, Axel finally reached the instrument maker's place of work, and knocked on the wall besides a sitting blond man, who looked up at him with teal eyes that quickly lit up. Demyx, a tall man with an odd hair style that pointed up in all directions on top, and fell lose at the bottom, had been sitting outside his shop, working on a flute made of wood, using a knife to carve pre-marked places to get it just right.

"Emperor Axel! Long time no see, my lord!" The man said excitedly as he scrambled to stand up, causing Axel to laugh.

"Don't hurt yourself, Demyx. I have come to see how the instruments we ordered are coming along." The redhead helped the man up, grinning warmly.

"Oh, yeah!" The blond laughed and gestured for the man to follow him inside the shop. The entrance to the building was a large, square shaped hole that let in a lot of sunlight into the brightly decorated store. Instruments of all shapes and sizes were either hanging on or lined up against the walls neatly, looking more like decorations than useable tools. They were all made by Demyx and his apprentice and each was more beautiful and intricately designed than the next.

"Zexion! How are the instruments for the ritual coming along?" Demyx grinned and walked to a short man who was sitting in the back, painstakingly painting a flute, carefully painting everything perfectly.

Axel had always found Zexion a strange man. He was quiet, and resigned into himself, and always kept his odd purple bangs in front of one of his eyes, as if hiding what he knew – or protecting it. Still, despite his oddness, the emperor held no dislike for the man, and merely watched him lift his paintbrush and point to a slab of orange bricks that sat in the back corner of the shop across from them.

"They are close to finished. Most just need their last coat of paint, and they will be finished on time, long before the actual ceremony." Demyx grinned at this.

"You're getting faster, Zexy." The smaller man just rolled his eyes and went back to painting.

Grinning, Demyx led Axel to the table, and they both looked over the instruments, making sure each was perfect without touching them. Most of them were considered sacred, and one could even be sentenced to death for messing up while playing one, considering it offended the gods.

Axel smiled and nodded, "Perfect, as always. Demyx, Zexion, you are both amazing."

Zexion grunted his acknowledgment, and Demyx giggled, "Well, of course we are!"

Axel nodded in agreement, smiling happily. "And, of course, you will be paid handsomely for this."

"Oh, come on Emperor Axel. It's honor enough to have our instruments played during such holy celebrating. The pay is merely a pleasant bonus. Right Zexy?" Demyx turned to grin at the man, who only snorted.

"Yes, it is an honor, but I rather do like the idea of eating." He replied calmly, not looking up.

Axel chuckled at the blond's pout. "I'm afraid that'll be all. Thank you both for working so hard and for being such a big part of the ceremony. It could not be done without you."

Demyx smiled and happily led the emperor out. "It's no problem, really. Thanks for stopping by!"

The red head was waved off, and he happily waved back at the man before turning and walking back to his palace. The emperor's presence warranted a lot of stares and bows as he passed the wealthy and their slaves, giving a general nod to those who bothered a greeting.

Meanwhile, deeper in the forest, a familiar bird was flying through the trees, heading to see an also familiar and usually grouchy bat.

"_Riku! Riku, I saw that human again!_" Sora chirped excitedly as he landed on the branch his best friend was hanging from. An assorted array of mumbled curses was heard from the bat's self-made cocoon. After a long moment, Riku finally uncurled himself from his wings and flew up to land in some nearby branches to help keep the sun from his eyes. What he said next surprised the yellow bird.

"_Sora… You need to stop hanging around this human._" The bat spoke slowly and carefully, but still the bird did not react well.

"_What do you mean? He's only been nice to me! He even gave me food! Why shouldn't I see him?_" Sora snapped angrily at his friend.

Riku sighed slightly, "_Sora, nothing good can come out of befriending him. You know that, or at least you should know that. Why else do you think we hunt each other? Humans hunt us, and those who eat meat will attempt to eat the human's. That's how it's always been._"

Sora puffed out his chest feathers and glared. "_Well, I'm sick of how things are, Riku! He's a nice human, and he won't hurt me!"_

"_Fine, but if he doesn't, someone else will! I'm telling you Sora, nothing good will come out of this!_"

The golden bird squawked at the bat angrily, "_Just be quiet Riku! You don't know them!_"

With that, the angry little bird jumped off the branch and flew away.

"_Sora! Where are you going?_" Riku screeched after him, but the bird didn't want to listen or maybe he just didn't have an answer to give at the moment. He didn't know where he was going, but anywhere was better than there.

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><p>The sound of a wooden chair shattering against a rough orange-brown wall echoed through the small home as a man raged in his delusions.<p>

"Axel! Why won't you see me?" He screeched at the broken chair, as if it was the entire reason for his pain.

After screaming for the hundredth time, the man stood in the middle of his small home and panted, trying to calm himself. "I know…I'll just make you see me." He grinned to himself and let out a small deranged chuckle that quickly turned into a loud, crazy filled cackle.

"Don't worry, Axel! We'll be together soon, don't worry, don't worry, my love!"

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><p>CHAPTER THREE, MOE'SUCKRA! :}D!<p>

_**Review Replies:**_

**_Russiada:_**

LOOK! AN UPDATE :D YOUR EXCITMENT WAS NOT MISPLACED! :D I am so happy you liked it! It makes me so happy to have reviewers! Thank you!

_**Alphafangdemon:**_

Oh my god, I was in my last class of the day when my phone buzzed to tell me I had an email. Is sat there smiling as I read your review under the table! I loved your hat and monacle thing ;) I really hope you like this chapter! Thank you for reviewing!

_**P5hng-Me-A'Wy:**_

To resist sounding like a crazy fan girl, I'll just say thank you, and that I love you :)

_**Dolly-D-Mushroom: **_

I would crash any wedding if Mansex was the priest! That would be funny as heck! XD Thank you so much for reviewing and wanting to marry my baby, I know you two will be happy together :) Thank you! YOU ARE SO FULL OF AWESOME SAUCE IT SHOULD BE ILEGALL! XD

_**DaBunneh:**_

Thank you for reviewing :D and, you know, it's funny, I hadn't relized how similar the two are till you pointed it out XD this story is like the princess and the frog!


	4. Chapter 4

**GUESS WHAT? I OWN EVERYTHING :D**** *is shot***

**Warnings: This one's pretty tame... I've gone soft...**

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><p>After finding another tree to stay in for the night, Sora had taken roost on a long branch, still angry.<p>

Who did Riku think he was? The human – Axel – had been nothing but kind to him! He'd given him food, talked with him, called him beautiful, and he even liked his voice! When was the last time Riku had told him his voice pretty? Forever ago, that's for sure. He usually just told him to shut up, that he was interrupting his sleep.

The small golden bird squawked, 'Well, I don't need you, Riku. I have a new best friend, and he is prettier and way awesomer than you will ever be.'

Having been satisfied with his small inner rant, the small bird closed his eyes and finally allowed his tired body rest, thoughts of a strange red furred human and of what the next day would bring sending Sora off to a peaceful and dreamless sleep.

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><p>"My lord? Emperor?" Only silence answered.<p>

The sound of an angry growl was heard before a loud, "Axel!" was shouted, causing the redhead to jump and yelp, hand immediately dropping to the beautiful, but very useful, dagger strapped to his thigh, hidden beneath the cloth wrapped around his waist.

The emperor looked up at his possible attacker, and let out a relieved sigh when he recognized the annoyed scowl that greeted him. Axel leaned back, yawning and stretching.

He glanced around before looking up back up at the one who had interrupted his nap.

By the looks of the sun from the window, it was still morning and he was still sitting on his plush pillow made from woven threads and the low table he had fallen asleep on still help many tomes and papers he needed to check over. The small personal study room he called his was often where Axel did most of his work, unless he felt a change of scenery was necessary, in which case he would go out and find a place to sit and work somewhere else inside the palace. This could have easily been in the middle of the hallway or a guest's bedroom.

"Hey Saïx." He chuckled as the scowl on the blue haired man deepened.

"Do not 'hey' me, Emperor." Saïx grumbled. The well-built male stood in front of his grinning lord, his golden eyes irritated. A large X shaped scar rested between his almost feral looking eyes, something he had gotten during conquest of a neighboring kingdom.

Their people were warriors, and even Axel had to prove himself before being accepted as emperor by fighting in many battles and conquering two neighboring cities, though he had gotten out of those battles with smaller, less dramatic scars then his old friend Saïx.

"Come on, now you're sounding like Xemnas. Stop changing Saïx! I want my buddy back!" He half whined, smiling teasingly at the man.

Saïx sighed and shook his head. "Just because I had decided to grow up doesn't mean we are no longer friends. Quit being so dramatic and childish."

Axel chuckled and stood up before wrapping his arms around his old friend. "Alright, fine, but you have to stop acting like a buzz kill. I know the ritual is coming up and we should be stressing, but we should also live our lives happily, as it is a gift from the gods. These are a times of celebrations, dear friend."

A little surprised by the show of physical affection, Saïx was slow to wrap his arms around Axel, though once he had he relaxed a little and gave the man a slight squeeze, which the emperor returned before smiling and pulling away.

"So, you had to come here for something. What's up, oh high-priest-in-training?" The redhead patted the man's shoulder, curiosity written all over his face.

The blue haired man shook his head before regaining his dropped composer. "Xemnas had asked me to come here and tell you to go check on the progress of the ceremonial masks."

Axel moaned dramatically, "Seriously? Why doesn't he send a servant or you to go check on them? He had me checking on the instruments yesterday. I honestly don't understand that man."

The priest's apprentice scoffed. "It is because we are all afraid you will become fat and lazier. You do not do as much as you should, Axel."

"What are you talking about? All I do is work. See? Look at how many stacks of papers I have on my desk." The redhead gestured to the table where there was indeed a lot of paperwork. "It isn't _all _about conquering other cities and collecting tributes and sacrifices, thank you very much. It is hard to run an empire, no matter how easy it looks."

Saïx hummed and picked up a paper from the table, ignoring most of Axel's rant. The redhead caught onto the fact he was being ignored, and he glared at the scarred man, who only smirked at the feeling of being glared at.

The smirk was replaced with a frown as he examined the paper more intently. "…Forty-seven blue, black, and white pillows, thirty red pillow, thirty-five yellow pillows, ten wooden stands, a golden bowl, a silver bowl, ten pounds of seeds, corn, and dried fruit, seven plants and a large stone bowl… All to be delivered to the palace by sunrise tomorrow." The blue haired man lifted up disbelieving eyes to stare up at the red head, who was looking away yet still trying to look innocently nonchalant.

"Axel… What the hell is this?"

The emperor held his hands up in surrender, "Okay, okay. You got me. This little bird keeps flying here lately, and I named it Roxas…. The stuff on that paper are things I'm going to be buying for the little thing…. You know, to keep him as a pet…"

Saïx stared at him for a minute, and things grew quiet. Finally, Saïx broke the quiet.

"I think... I think you've finally lost it, Axel…" He said quietly, with a straight face. "If you really wanted a bird so badly, you could have just bought one."

The emperor scoffed loudly and waved his hand. "I don't want just any bird. I want my Roxy."

Saïx groaned and slammed his palm against his forehead. "My lord, you must have gotten your strangeness from your father. I suppose we should all be grateful that you only inherited some of his laziness."

Axel started laughing, "I guess you're right. My father was an odd one. I hope he is living it up with the gods right now…" He looked down and his smile turned a little sad.

"Yes, Reno was a good king, and we were lucky to have him for as long as we did." Saïx rested his hand on his friend's shoulder and smiled at him gently, a rare thing as Saïx never let his composure down long enough for anyone to see him being kind.

Axel smiled back at him gently before sighing and taking the letter from Saïx.

"Well, I guess I should get going. I'd rather get this over with now. I have nothing against Xaldin, but he certainly isn't my favorite person…"

The blue haired man smirked and nodded. "Be sure he doesn't stab you."

Axel laughed before heading towards the exit. "It was good seeing you again, Saïx. Only a few more weeks and we'll all have a bit more free time. We should have lunch one of these days."

The high-priest in training followed the man out, nodding. "Of course, my lord. I look forward to it."

Axel grinned at the man before turning and walking away, Saïx going a separate way as Axel headed to the city once again.

He wasn't sure why Xemnas kept making him go out on all these errands, even if they didn't bother him as much as he let on, but he was still curious. His father had never been asked to go on so many of these errands…

He sighed, and straightened up as he passed the street vendors, many of the citizens bowing to him and offering greetings as he headed to the busiest part of the city to visit the mask maker's shop. He wished the talented man would have thought more like Demyx and Zexion, and would have set up shop in a quieter place besides the market place, but, of course, nothing could be done to change what had already been set.

"Oi, mi' lord!" A voice suddenly called for him, and usually Axel would have just ignored the voice except that this one held the strangest accent he had ever heard.

The emperor paused and looked off to the side to see a tall blond man sitting in a chair, small round table in front of him. Axel briefly wondered what idiot would set up a table and chair in the middle of the street. A look at the number of cups on the table, and the distinct smell of octli answered the man's question; A drunk idiot.

His curiosity got the better of him and he walked over to the man. "What is it?"

'_The Gambler of Fate_' was written on a card sitting on the table. The blond haired man had extremely short hair as well as a blond goatee. Odd piercings lined his ears and his drunken smirk made Axel want to punch him for an unknown reason.

"Thought you would like tah have your fortune told, oh mighty emperor." The man drawled in his strange accent.

The redhead raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? And what makes you think that?"

The question only seemed to encourage the drunken man to grin, and he slid a deck of odd looking cards from a pocket on his thigh. He talked as he began shuffling the cards. "But of course. It could only be the work of the gods that you should have walked down _this _path to head to the market place. Only fate could have made you stop when I called for you. Only destiny could have kept you standing here for so long while I rambled."

Axel sighed and rolled his eyes. "How much?" Even if it was nothing but stupid ramblings, Axel didn't mind the distraction, and anything was better than the awkward conversation waiting for him at the large mask maker's store.

A large white smile was flashed at him. "Two silver coins, sir."

The strange fact was that that wasn't much to ask, not even to regular peasant. The man was either incredibly cheap when it came to poorer customers, or the so-called fortune teller had no plans on raising the price to one as wealthy as he was.

With a hesitant nod, the emperor pulled two coins from the pouch that was hidden under the cloth around his waist and dropped them into one of the empty cups on the table.

"Alright then, let's see what the cards have to say to you, your highness."

The blond man then began shuffling his cards differently, in a bizarre manner, before laying them out onto the table one at a time. He laid seven cards down, some of them held oddly painted faces and characters, while others held strange symbols. Axel had never heard of anyone telling a fortune like the man was now. Usually the sooth sayer, or whatever they wished to be called, would have used bones, blood, animal sacrifice, and fire to see into the future and this man only studied the seven cards on the table as the emperor watched on with curiosity.

"Interesting... Very interesting future you have in store for you, my lord." The blond man looked up at him and Axel raised an eyebrow.

"Interesting how?"

The man pursed his lips and waited a moment before talking. "According to the cards… You will find love in the oddest of places – it will be true love, a rare kind of love the gods rarely bless on anyone… But…"

"But?"

"But there is someone in your way, yet that same person will be the one to thank for your love. They will do whatever they can to ruin it, and they could succeed… If you let them. One person shall have your best interests at heart, while the other only theirs. You will have to be careful of whom you trust, and tread carefully when meeting new people. If you make the right decision, you will spend the rest of your life happy, and if you make the wrong one… You'll either live miserably or die. It is up to the situation, and your decisions before them. The past should not be dwelled upon, and you should focus on what you are told." The fortune teller nodded his head and gathered the cards back up into his hands.

Axel blinked and frowned. "That's all?"

The blond scoffed. "Yes, that's all. The cards can only give so much information, and you still need to figure out your own path. Nothing is certain, my lord."

The emperor decided not to comment on the scoff, and simply nodded at the man before dropping seven gold coins into the cup, causing the fortune teller to pause and stare at the cup.

"Thank you for an interesting fortune." He nodded his head and began walking away.

"The name's Luxord, my lord, and it was a pleasure." The man called after Axel, who didn't respond as he walked away.

What did all that mean? He didn't completely believe in everything the man had said, but it certainly gave him food for thought. So he had to watch who he trusted? Interesting…

The tall redhead continued his walk to the mask maker's shop, only having an idea what had been set in motion for him.

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><p><em><strong>CHAPTER FOUR! LOOK AT IT IN ITS GLORY! :D<strong>_

_**REVIEWER RESPONSES:**_

**_Alphafangdemon:_**

Oh, dont worry I wasn't caught, and it would have been completly worth it to read your review :) Holy crap, I love you! XD I read this review and couldn't stop laughing. I even had to show my friends how awesome you are :D I'm not offended in the least, and love this type of review more often! Lol, I'm happy you enjoyed the last chapter and i hope you continue to lovee what i write :3 you're flippen awesome. As for Mr. Antagonist-Stalker-Sasquatch-In-A-Jumpsuit-Man, you'll just have to wait and see! MUAHAHAHAHAHAAHAH! P.s. I am so happy to see your reviews. They always make me smile. :) Thank you.

_**P5hng-Me-A'Wy:**_

*deep breath* I FREAKING LOVE YOU!

Okay, I feel better. :) Lol, yes the crazy stalker is incredibly important to this story, and you'll just have to wait and see what happens to little Roxy ;) And Mansex... Well you'll just have to wait and see his roll in the story :D Thank you so much for reviewing again!

**_Dolly-D-Mushroom:_**

NO. DON'T YOU DARE MAKE FAN ART! MY HEART WOULD EXPLODE FROM YOUR SHEAR AWESOMENESS! DO YOU WANT ME TO DIE? lol, at least i would die happily. I would love you forever if you drew me fanart, seriously, that's like a dream come true for me! I'm so happy you liked this story enough to want to draw for it... You're going to make me cry :'D Oh, and my story is whatever you want it to be ;) lol you'll have to wait and see who he is! Thank you so much for being so awesome! I love you!

_**Russiada:**_

Are you still alive? :) Lol, thank you so much for reviewing, and I'm so happy you like this story and my writing! It's thanks to people like you I feel so motivated to write! Thank you so much! And you mut wait and se who he is! MUAHAHAHA THE SUSPENSE!

_**Once again, I'd like to thank all of my reviewers for being so awesome, I am hugging all of you in my mind! :D PLEASE REVIEW AGAIN! IT MAKES ME SO HAPPY AND MAKES ME WANT TO WRITE MORE! DON'T YOU WANT MORE? COME ON! PUSH THE BUTTON! LOOK! IT'S SHINY!**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**WARNINGS: NOTHING **_

_**DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING...WHEN DO WE EVER?**_

_**Okay, I dont like posting stuff up here, but I have to now! Look at this amazing Fanart! Both of them! Go look! ( just remove the spaces )**_

ht tp : / / p5hng - me - awy . deviantart . com /#/ d4nj1li

http: / / dollydmushroom. deviantart. com / # / d4nhoo9

_**They are both so amazing and I am so thankful for both of you :')**_

* * *

><p>A knife barely avoided hitting Axel in the face, instead it became trapped in the wall next to the emperor's head. He turned and stared at it before looking up at the thrower.<p>

"Whoops. Forgive the slip, my lord. We've been having thieves running around lately." The burly mask maker, Xaldin, walked up to him and pulled the knife out of the wall.

"Thieves? Who would steal from a man like you, Xaldin?" Axel asked, looking surprised.

His surprise was certainly well founded. What fool would steal from one of the largest men in the city? The well-built man had long black hair, the rope like strands pulled back into a high pony tail, and oddly styled side burns, and besides just looking intimidating by sheer muscle mass, he was also one of the best knife and spear users in the empire.

It made sense that a man good with knives would carve wooden masks for a living. Now if only he worked on his people skills…

The large man shrugged and walked over to a large slab of stone held up by other stones. "The masks are coming slower than expected."

The emperor blinked, and was pulled out of his inner musings. "What? What do you mean?" Axel walked up next to him, frowning deeply.

Xaldin rolled his eyes. "Like I said, thievery problems."

Axel looked at all the half-finished masks, and saw that there were nowhere near enough masks for the ceremony. There were masks needed for the dancers, the high priest, the musicians, himself, and so many other important people had to wear them…

"You remember Larxene, don't you?" Xaldin's smooth voice mused aloud, causing Axel's head to snap up and stare at him in shock.

"_She's _the thief?" Larxene, a tall blonde with a huge attitude problem, had been Xaldin's apprentice for a long time, and, though she had also been talented with knives, she had been worse at turning the harsh blade into a tool used to make art, as far as the emperor had heard.

The black haired man grumbled under his breath, but nodded. "She wanted a larger pay, but I told her her work wasn't to master quality yet and she became angry and quit. The moody bitch snuck in during the middle of the night and stole some masks. I am trying to catch up, but it is harder with only one working, as I'm sure you can understand."

Axel shook his head. "I do understand, but you need to have that woman arrested! Not only for thievery but for interrupting and stalling work for the gods! She should be killed for her actions." Axel glared seriously down at the masks. Xaldin sighed and nodded before crossing his arms over his broad chest.

"I am trying. She's not in her home, and the warriors from the law enforcement office I sent out to find her cannot seem to hunt her down, even though it has been days. I wish I could have gone out looking for her in their place, but the masks need to be tended to."

The hard expression on the man's face showed how much he wished he could exact his revenge on the one who had stolen from him. Axel decided he never wanted to cross the man, simply looking at the murderous expression on his face.

"I am sorry for what has happened and you will be paid handsomely for the trouble, but will all the masks be done? I understand the strain you are under, but we _need_ those masks…"

The mask maker growled, but nodded. "I know. I have been sleeping as little as I can and will not accept any other orders until I am finished… The gods are more important. I will finish them before the ritual, and will try to be as quick as I can."

The large man nodded solemnly and Axel knew he could trust the man.

"Thank you." Axel lifted an awkward hand up to pat the man's arm.

"Is that everything? " Xaldin asked gruffly, making Axel hide a chuckle.

"Yes, that is everything. Have a good day, and I hope you catch her." The emperor offered the other man a smile before turning and walking out of the shop.

The emperor walked down the same street he had used to get to the market place, and was a little surprised to see the table and its drunken inhabitant gone. Getting over it, he walked through the streets, this time he was too caught up in thinking about things that he had heard from the day to bother responding to the citizens that wished him a good day.

When he got to the palace, he figured he should get to the work that needed to be done; taxes that needed to be counted, especially horrible prisoners that were waiting for a sentence, and the like.

After about fifty minutes, Axel decided he could not stand the sight of his desk any longer and, after grabbing important papers, he began walking through the hallways, trying to find a new place to work.

As he walked he read a letter asking for help, sent from a nearby conquered territory asking for food since they were going through a famine.

Suddenly a flash of blond caught the corner of his eye, and he looked up in time to see a flash of pink.

A "GET AWAY FROM ME YOU FLOWERY FREAK!" was screamed, and then everything made sense.

"You can't run away from my love forever, Vexen!" Marluxia cackled evilly as he chased after the palace healer.

"I sure as hell can try you freak!"

And like that, the two disappeared behind a corner. Axel stood there staring at the place they had once been and, for a moment, he debated with himself about going to help the poor blond man.

"…Nah." The emperor shrugged and started off again down the hall.

Axel ended up outside again, in his usual spot where he usually saw his Roxy-bird. He smiled softly to himself at that thought, and even glanced up to look at the tree were the little golden bird usually sat and tweeted at him.

The emperor pouted a little when he glanced at the sun and saw it still wasn't afternoon yet. The redhead sighed to himself and resigned himself to work.

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><p>His human was there! Sora tweeted happily as he landed on the branch and flapped his wings at the red-furred human, trying to gain his attention.<p>

He hadn't expected Axel to be at their spot so early, and he had expected to be waiting for another hour at the least. He had spent his morning exploring the jungle that he lived in while getting food, and just trying to pass the time as quickly as possible.

He still hadn't spoken to Riku, and he was not about to apologize.

The human glanced up at him, and Sora was happy to see a large smile spread onto his cheeks.

"Roxas! Come here little birdie." The emperor lifted his hand up for the bird, setting his paperwork on the bench with his other hand.

Sora chirped happily and hopped off the branch he had been on and flew till he reached the human's finger and landed on it gracefully.

The human chuckled. "Hello little one, how was your day?"

Sora bent down and nuzzled the man's wrist. 'I missed you all day! I was so bored…'

"Aww Roxy, you are too cute." Axel used his free hand to gently stroke the bird's side. "I have a big surprise for you! You'll have to wait to see it, though. I'm sure you'll love it though."

Axel smiled down at him and Sora flapped his wings in excitement. 'My name isn't Roxas… But I guess I don't mind being your Roxas…'

"My lord!" A voice called, and Axel's head snapped up to see the newcomer.

It was that silver furred human followed by a strange blue furred man with a scar.

Sora tweeted in fear and hopped onto Axel's shoulder and hid in his red mane. He didn't like this blue furred human… He didn't look safe.

Axel shushed him gently and lifted a hand up to stroke the bird's feathers.

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><p><strong><em>WHOOOOOOOO WHAT DO THEY WANT? XD i know, haha! Don't woory people! SHITS ABOUT TO GET REAL UP IN HEYAH!<em>**

Reviewer responses:

**_P5hng-Me-A'Wy:_**

XD I am so happy you like it! Right? I would love to be Roxas/Sora! All that luxury and all you have to do is flap your wings and eat. XD You are so wonderful, thank you! Thank you for the review, and a thousand more thanks for the fanart! It was absolutly amazing and I shoved it into the faces of everyone I knew! Thank you! THANK YOU!

**_Formidable Rain:_**

But it's original eh? ;) I'm sorry you're confused, it'll all get better soon, after all, when you get a new pet, don't you rename it? :) I'm so happy you reviewed, thank you so much!

**_Akio F:_**

Hey Ana! :D Thank you for reading! Yes. as you've clearly seen, there are other side pairings... some just aren't as... consenual as others XD I love you!

_**Dolly-D-Mushroom:**_

YOUR ART WAS AMAZING! YOU CAN ASK MY FRIENDS, CAUSE I SHOVED IT IN THERE FACES! :D I WAS ALMOST CRYING WHEN I SAW YOUR PICTURE! And your review was so sweet, so it made me want to cry even more! lol, I actually through that into the story for you, to show that it couldnt be Vexen; he's to busy beating off a stalker of his own! Thank you for reviewing as always!

_**Russiada:**_

As always, I love reading your reviews :3 I'm happy your still here! Thank you for reviewing!

_**Please find it in your heart to review. Think of the children... The poor children... They want an update, you want an update... Do it for both of you...Just... Please push that button... Even if all you put down is the letter J and submit it, I will love you! REVIEW!**_

_**That is all.**_


	6. Chapter 6

_**Warnings: Language and people being weirdos.**_

_**Disclaimer: What? You thought I owned Kingdom Hearts? That's either a complement, or you're just not the brightest crayon in the box…**_

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><p>Axel looked up at the approaching priests and raised an eyebrow, his hand gently stroking the bird hiding in his hair.<p>

"Saïx, Xemnas? What is it?"

The silver haired man stopped beside him and crossed his arms, looking as serious and devoid of emotion as always.

"Still playing with that bird, my lord?" Xemnas' tone was almost sarcastic, causing the young emperor to roll his eyes.

"Yes, and his name is Roxas, by the way." Axel sighed and stood up, the golden bird on his shoulder squeaking in surprise at the movement, "Why are you both here? Has something happened?"

Unless he went to the temple, the redhead never saw the two men together. Saïx was usually busy on errands or tending to the temple itself, and only gods knew what Xemnas did with all his free time.

"Some prisoners have escaped. We came here to inform you, and get your help in recovering them."

The emperor's blood ran cold, and his eyes widened. "Escaped? What do you mean, how could they have? How many?"

Xemnas shook his head gravely, "Twenty three. An entire cell empty. As to how they had gotten out, I can only assume one had stolen a guard's dagger and broke themselves and the others free. They killed twenty guards and escaped to the jungles. We must send a search party out at once before the jungle's beasts get to them, or they get farther away. I do not think I have to explain to you how important each one is."

Axel shook his head and moved his hand up to gently grab the golden feathered bird, pulling him off and setting him down on the bench.

"I'm sorry little Roxas, I'll see you tomorrow. I have to work."

The red head smiled softly at the bird when it cocked its head and hopped closer to him. The emperor wanted to stay and listen to his bird sing for him, but he was needed elsewhere.

Axel started to walk away, and his Roxas squeaked after him, but didn't follow.

'Bye…' Sora thought sadly before tweeting softly and flying off into the forest.

"We need to hunt down Xigbar first. The freaking bastard could be anywhere though, and we don't have time to waste." The emperor was clearly more focused then he had been throughout the entire process that went into the ritual, and Xemnas was silently impressed, while Saïx glanced back at the retreating bird, watching it fly away before he refocused his attentions on the two men he was following.

"From where did the prisoners escape from?" Axel asked quickly as he strode into the palace.

"By the trail of blood that led out of the temple, I'd guess to the east." Xemnas growled slightly. "Those damn fools only thinking of themselves. Their blood belongs to the gods, and yet they willingly throw it onto the ground and waste it."

Axel shook his head as he walked through the hallways. "They will receive their punishments from the gods when they meet them."

Saïx grunted, "We should punish them, after all the trouble they have started."

"It is not our place to give punishments on this scale. Only the gods can create a punishment to fit this crime." The sliver haired man scolded his apprentice.

Axel grabbed a servant by the arm and jerked the surprised man closer.

"Do you know where the commander is?" The emperor growled at the dark skinned servant who was shaking a little in fear of the angry ruler.

"He-he's on the training grounds, my lord, last I heard, s-sir…"

The redhead pushed the man into the wall and, with a gruff "Thank you," he started to walk to the opposite side of the palace to where the training grounds were, Xemnas and Saïx following closely behind.

They made it too the training grounds in record time, the emperor striding ahead of the other two, his irritation radiating off his body as he walked across the fields.

The training ground was just a large field their warriors trained in. From spears to arrows, they trained every day to honor the gods and to help expand their empire.

Many of the warriors that had been training paused to look at the three men. To get any high rank in their culture, one must have been a great warrior as well as good at their position. To say that each man that passed the warriors had earned their position would have been an understatement, and each man dropped whatever he was doing, and fell to one knee as they were passed.

Axel passed the men with little thought and walked right to the large stone built building that sat at the edge of the fields, Xemnas and Saïx following close behind him.

The sound of fighting came from inside the building, as well as the sound of cheering and betting. The emperor shook his head and walked in.

"Xigbar!"

Everyone in the room froze and looked at the emperor and the priests standing in the door way.

On the ground two men had frozen in an awkward position, a man with black and white hair, and a young looking recruit with dark brown hair. The younger warrior was caught in between the other man's legs, his arm being pulled back in a more-than-likely painful way.

"What?" Xigbar asked, raising an eyebrow as he sat on top of the youth.

Xigbar, the commander of the army, and was someone Axel spent a lot of time with, was a tall man with greying black hair, streaks of white mixing with the black. His face held one large scar that started from his nostril and ended below his chin, and he was missing on eye, the scar hidden behind a piece of cloth tied around his head.

"Stop whatever it is you're doing and come here. Lexaeus, you too." Axel snapped to Xigbar and a large man with reddish brown hair leaning alone against a wall.

The two men looked at each other and both shrugged. Lexaeus shrugged off the wall and Xigbar released the youth he'd been wrestling.

Axel took a few steps back as the large second-in-command walked out of the building and was quickly followed by the commander.

"Alright Red, what do we have going on that's so damn important, I wasn't allowed to snap that squirts arm?" Xigbar grumbled, crossing his arms, Lexaeus crossing his arms, silently asking what was wrong in his way.

"Prisoners have escaped. Prisoners meant for the ritual." Xemnas growled to Xigbar, glaring down at him condescendingly.

The man's one good eye widened. "Are you serious? How many? Did they get shot?"

"Twenty three. And, no. They didn't get shot. They killed all the guards before that could have happened." The silverette rolled his eyes.

"This will not stand! I'll have those little bastards gutted and skinned!" The commander yelled angrily. "Teach 'em what happens when you mess with _my_ warriors!"

"My lord! Emperor Axel!" Everyone turned their head and watched as a slave came running up to them, his skin dark from working in the sun, and his hair was cut short. When he made it too the group, he dropped his hands to his knees and tried to catch his breath. After a moment, he finally had enough air to speak.

"My lord! Some… Some odd things have arrived at the palace, and the merchant bringing the strange things says they've been ordered from the palace…Is he telling the truth?"

The slave looked up at him, frowning slightly.

Nothing was said for a moment as all eyes rested on Axel. A small grin broke out onto the red head's face.

"Yes. Yes he's telling the truth."

* * *

><p>I'm so sorry for all the drama this chapter has caused! I blame school! Let's blow it up! KIDDING. Anyways, the updating schedule will return to normal for now... And I'm a little sad... It's been a month that I've been writing this story, and it'll becoming to an end soon... We'll see how long this baby wants to drag out, but at least it's been a fun ride :D<p>

**_Reviewer Response:_**

**_Akio F:_**

Hi Ana! :D I love you! :3

**_Raven:_**

You...I love you. You sarcastic little weirdo, I love you. Thank you for reviewing. :)

**_Formidable Rain:_**

I'm sorry it's confusing, I promise if you just stick through a little longer all the confusion will be worth it! Thank you for reviewing! And I'm sorry I brought your hopes up before...

_**P5hng-Me-A'Wy:**_

I FREAKING LOVE YOU :'D Thank you for being understanding and for being awesome and drawing for this story. It really is you awesome people that keep me going. Thank you so much!

_**dutchess . farfie:**_

Thank you for reviewing! I'm so happy you liked this story! Thank you so much!

_**Russiada:**_

You? Annoying? Please, I love when my phone beeps at me and I look and it's a review. It always makes my day, and it's even better when it's a review from someone who's been reviewing since the begining. I'm so happy that you still like this story! Thank you so much for your dedication! I love you! :)

_**Lani Carmine:**_

Thank you for reviewing! :D And you'll just have to wait and see, Muahahahhaha...

_**Dolly-D-Mushroom:**_

I loved your fanart! It literally blew my mind, and the minds of my friends! And, are you sure? Is Saix your final pick? Muahahah... You'll just have to wait and see who this crazy mad man is... Of course, I already know. And thank you for being so understanding. You're just awesome :)

_**randomscreamfest:**_

No tears, beta. All is well again. :D

**Review. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. DO IT. Or else...Or else you'll get the curse of the crazy antagonistic stalker! You don't want this curse! CLICK THE BUTTON.**


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